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Extra.ie
7 days ago
- Health
- Extra.ie
Call for private water supplies to be registered amid growing health concerns
The Environmental Protection Agency says there is an urgent need for all private drinking water supplies to be registered amid growing health concerns. It comes as the EPA revealed that the number of private group schemes failing to meet the E. coli standard almost doubled last year compared to two years previously. The environmental watchdog said that the total number of small private supplies remains unknown as there is no legal obligation to register, and unregistered supplies are not monitored by local authorities. Pic: Getty Images The EPA's survey of drinking water in Ireland – due to be released today – found that the water quality in private water supplies is not as good as in public supplies. Currently, more than 370 private group schemes supply drinking water to 193,000 people across rural communities in Ireland. Many businesses and public facilities across the country also supply water from their own private wells. There are almost 1,700 small, private supplies registered with local authorities – but many more are not registered. These unregistered supplies may include those serving schools, nursing homes, sports clubs and self-catering accommodations, the EPA said. Pic: Getty Images Micheál Lehane, EPA director, said: 'The lack of a mandatory requirement to register a private supply serving water to the public is a serious legislative gap that must be addressed. 'Without registration and subsequent monitoring by local authorities, consumers are unaware of the potential health risk they may be exposed to. Everyone has the right to safe drinking water.' He added: 'We want to see mandatory registration, but in the interim we strongly encourage private suppliers to register with local authorities so that all proper safety checks can be carried out on their supply.' Pic: Sasko Lazarov/ The EPA said meeting E. coli standards is a minimum requirement in the provision of safe drinking water. It said failures indicate a lack of proper disinfection, which must be addressed by water suppliers. In total, 24 private group schemes failed to meet the E. coli standard in 2024 – up from 13 in 2022. Six schemes had repeat failures over two consecutive years, and five of these are on long-term boil-water notices. E. coli failures were recorded in 51 small private supplies monitored by local authorities, posing a risk to consumers who use them. Noel Byrne, EPA programme manager, said: 'E. coli contamination of a drinking water supply can cause serious public health impacts. E. coli compliance has declined, with almost double the number of private supplies failing in 2024 compared to 2022. 'This needs to be addressed as every community deserves access to safe, clean drinking water. Suppliers must take action to upgrade their systems and meet standards. 'Local authorities, as the regulator of private group schemes, need to take the necessary enforcement action to ensure public health is protected.' A group of chemical compounds known as trihalomethanes (THMs) can form when natural material such as leaves or other organic matter in the water source reacts with chlorine used to disinfect the drinking water. The EPA said that while disinfection is essential, THM levels should be kept as low as possible and must be in compliance with drinking water standards. In 2024, 19 private group schemes, which supply 21,800 people nationwide, failed to meet the standard for THMs – a similar figure to 2023. The EPA's report on Drinking Water Quality In Private Group Schemes And Small Private Supplies In 2024 is available on its website.
Extra.ie
11-06-2025
- Business
- Extra.ie
Calls for a Bank Holiday in July leave many Irish divided
Irish people have been left divided over calls for another bank holiday during the summer months. Ireland, which has 10 bank holiday's annually, has less on average than the EU, which boasts an average of just over 12. Well, we won't say no to another day off work that's for sure! Pic: Getty Images Now, Donegal County Council are looking to rectify this, calling on the Government for an additional Bank Holiday in July to honour St Columcille, the third patron saint of Ireland. St Columcille is the patron saint of poets and bookbinders and was believed to hold back floods. It is believed he was born in Gartan in Co Donegal, and is also recognized as the founder of Derry City. Irish people have been left divided over calls for another bank holiday during the summer months. Pic: Sasko Lazarov / The campaign comes after a bank holiday was added in February to celebrate St Brigid, the second saint of Ireland back in 2023. In 2025, there are bank holidays in January, February, March, April, May, June, August, October, and on December 25 and 26, therefore Donegal councillor Jimmy Kavanagh has called for July to get a similar treatment. However, Claire Clarkson, also known as @whatsgoingoninireland, shared the update with her TikTok followers, with many left divided by the campaign. She questioned: 'Do you think we get enough time off as it is and we should just be working even harder?' While many were in favour of the move, many business owners weren't having it. 'It's costing small business a fortune on bank holiday weekends and nothing extra gained,' one user commented. 'How can the small & medium businesses afford their employees 2 extra bank holidays? We the consumer will ultimately pay thus increasing the cost of living crisis,' another added. 'I'm pretty sure if employees had an option of a day off the end of the month, no pay, they'd take it. Small companies struggling enough, and too many closures as is,' a third penned. What do you think? Would a July Bank Holiday be up you alley?
Irish Examiner
10-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
Former Waterford Crystal site to become university enterprise quarter
The former Waterford Crystal manufacturing site is to be transformed into part of the country's first co-located university enterprise quarter. A 37-acre Glassworks site will be established as part of the €130m initiative, featuring world-class offices beside the South East Technological University's (SETU) academic and research facilities. It is hoped it will act as an engine for high-quality employment, economic growth, research and education in Waterford and the wider south-east region. The site will develop to have capacity for up to 6,000 employees, and planning permission has also been granted for a 582-student bed development on adjacent land. The move comes 16 years after crystal manufacturing ended at the Kilbarry site. The former Waterford Crystal manufacturing site is to be transformed into part of the country's first co-located university enterprise quarter. Picture: Sasko Lazarov/ It has been described as taking inspiration from successful international university enterprise quarters such as the University of Nottingham's Innovation Park and the Cortex innovation district in St Louis, Missouri, US. SETU president Professor Veronica Campbell said Glassworks' launch is a 'defining moment for the region and Ireland as a whole'. 'Glassworks will play a pivotal role in Ireland's knowledge economy, where students, start-ups and researchers can collaborate, test ideas and create the next generation of ground-breaking products, technologies and businesses,' she said. The first commercial building is being developed with a €43m investment by a joint venture between the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) and Frisby, the Waterford-based developers. Frisby director Noel Frisby Jr said: 'The crystal factory brought Waterford to the world and now Glassworks will bring the world to Waterford. 'This is a place where research, creativity and business ambition can thrive, and where our regional economy will continue to grow.' An impression of the entrance of Building One, the initial flagship office building of the Glassworks University Enterprise Quarter. Picture: Patrick Browne/PA Building One, the initial 80,000 square foot flagship office building, is expected to open by the end of the year with capacity for 800 employees. Director of ISIF, Nick Ashmore, added: 'Glassworks will create unique opportunities for both local and international businesses and act as a cornerstone for the south east's future development. 'ISIF's commitment to Building One is an example of its double bottom line mandate at work, investing on a commercial basis in a manner designed to support economic activity and employment in the state. 'This joint venture, as part of ISIF's city-specific investment programme, will support investment in Waterford as well as Cork, Galway, Limerick and Kilkenny, in the form of new places to work, to live and enabling investments to support these regions.'
Extra.ie
09-06-2025
- Business
- Extra.ie
'Radical reset' of housing policy needed as targets to be missed by 10,000 AGAIN
Housing targets will be missed by up to 10,000 units again this year and will fall short for the next several years, can reveal. Officials in the Department of Housing have warned Minister James Browne that the number of new homes built this year is likely to fall 'somewhere in the low 30,000s', compared to a target of 41,000. Internal briefing documents prepared for the Housing Minister, obtained by under Freedom of Information legislation, also raised concerns over the construction of desperately needed homes into the future. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael were accused of having 'misled' voters in the run up to last November's election, when they claimed 40,000 homes would be built last year but only 30,300 were delivered. 18/02/2025 Dublin Ireland. Fianna Fail Minister for Housing James Browne talking to the media on his way into today's cabinet meeting at Government Buildings. Photo: Sasko Lazarov/© In a statement to Extra, Mr Browne admitted this year's output will fall far short of target. He said it was 'difficult to see a pathway off the lower than expected base from 2024'. The Fianna Fáil TD insisted he is 'interrogating every area' that is delaying delivery of housing and 'demanding faster outcomes as soon as possible'. Ahead of the last election, the Government revised its housing targets upwards to account for Ireland's soaring population. Over the course of this Government's lifetime, the aim is to build 303,000 new homes – starting at 41,000 this year and ramping up to 60,000 by 2030. But there is already open admission within Government that their targets for 41,000 new homes this year and 43,000 next year will be widely missed, as the upward momentum in housing has evaporated. The documents prepared for the minister highlight the 'almost complete retrenchment of private international capital since 2022' as a 'significant factor' that will affect the delivery of housing in the coming years. Housing Development: Pic: Getty Images Institutional investors play a central role in the development of apartments and the 80% reduction in international capital since 2022 has led to a sizeable reduction in supply. The officials highlight that the pipeline for new apartments is slowing, with a 39% dip in planning permissions in 2024 'reflecting a general downward trend from the peak in 2020 and 2021'. This is already being felt in apartment completions which equated to 29% of all home completions in 2024, a drop of 7% from the previous year. The officials wrote: 'Delivery of apartments will be potentially constrained in coming years given the fall in institutional investment since mid-2022, and its slow return to date.' This depleted pipeline has placed the Government's housing targets beyond 2026 at risk, officials warned. They stated: 'The decline in overall approvals, as well as apartment approvals, has implications in the longer term for the delivery of Government's revised housing targets, with approvals falling short of the quantum needed to hit targets in 2026 and subsequent years.' Mr Browne said recently that he felt the Economic Social and Research Institute's prediction that 34,000 new homes would be built this year and 37,000 next year is probably broadly accurate. The internal documents prepared for Mr Browne by his officials in April state that an output in the low 30,000s this year is likely. They wrote: 'Published forecasts project between 32,000 and 35,000 new homes will be completed in 2025 – the forecasts will fluctuate as the year progresses, but somewhere in the low 30,000 range seems most realistic at this stage factoring in early feedback from the construction sector.' Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage James Browne TD speaking to the media in the Government Press Center following today's Cabinet meeting, Dublin. Photo: Sam Boal/Collins Photos The officials noted that while 'the emerging consensus from published forecasts' at the start of 2025 is between 32,000 and 35,000 new homes this year 'all forecasts should be treated with considerable caution at this stage'. They stated: 'A degree of circumspection is advised as a more conservative projection of 30,000, give or take, is mooted by stakeholders closer to residential construction sector.' Mr Browne said: 'I am seeing many of the same forecasts as are publicly available and most of them have the same trajectory for the year, which is in the low 30s, which seems realistic at this stage in the year – it would be difficult to see a pathway off the lower than expected base from 2024.' He said that he is 'interrogating every area' that is delaying delivery of housing and 'demanding faster outcomes as soon as possible'. Mr Browne added: 'I've been pulling together what's needed to boost delivery, including a revised National Planning Framework which will help increase our capacity and accelerate home building. The Housing Activation Office will hone in on the ground to address barriers impacting housing development. 'The buttons I press now may not feel like they have immediate impact but what I do now will impact home building for years and we have to get it right. I'm serious about that. Sorting out planning can be laboured – it is a rules-based process for many good reasons. That doesn't mean we aren't tackling it to speed it up. 'Measures to help scale-up delivery are being considered in the context of the next housing plan.' The officials pointed to planning permissions for 49,212 units that have not commenced in Dublin as one potential solution over the medium term. Of those, 7,272 are on sites where construction had started while 5,875 are being held up as they are the subject of a judicial review. Last week, Mr Browne announced plans to allow for the extension of planning permissions for developments that are set to expire and have not yet commenced. The permissions can be extended for up to three years. The proposals will also allow planning permissions subjected to or going through a judicial review to apply for a retrospective suspension of the permission for the duration of the judicial review. Pic: Sam Boal/Collins Photos Sinn Féin's housing spokesman Eoin Ó Broin told Extra: 'The ESRI and Central Bank, in their recent presentation to the Oireachtas Housing Committee, said that without a significant change in policy and investment, the new Programme for Government targets can not be met. 'All of the indicators are going in the wrong direction. 'Only a radical reset of housing policy, as recommended by the Housing Commission and Sinn Féin can start to undo the damage of years of bad Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael housing policy.' Mr Browne is set to unveil his new housing plan next month, prior to the Dáil's summer recess. Viability is a core challenge facing the sector, particularly in relation to apartments, with the Department of Finance in the process examining proposals to tackle funding challenges. It is expected that changes to apartment regulations will be made in an attempt to reduce the cost of building. The documents highlight the surge in the price of materials, which are now 33% higher than in January 2021. Officials wrote: 'Input cost inflation quickened for the second month running and was the steepest for almost two years.' The CSO's Wholesale Price Index for building and construction materials shows material input costs continue to rise. The Government has also been deciding on whether to retain, replace or amend the Rent Pressure Zones, which limit annual rent increases to 2%. It appears removing the 2% cap is now the plan. RPZs have been highlighted as a barrier to investment by institutional investors. Uisce Éireann has also warned that it will need an additional €2billion to connect new homes to the supply if it is to keep pace with increased housing targets. The housing officials pointed to issues in water and energy connections as one reason for the shortfall in completions last year as well as the Government's incentivising of commencing new developments.
Extra.ie
01-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Extra.ie
Fetsival-goers descend to Kilmainham for Forbidden Fruit
It's day two of Forbidden Fruit festival, which is taking place on the grounds of the Irish Museum of Modern Art, Royal Hospital Kilmainham. Gates opened at 2pm, with last entry at 9.30pm — and tickets are still available to purchase via Ticketmaster if you're looking for something to fill up your Bank Holiday Sunday. Attendees are reminded that only bags A4-size and smaller are permitted into the concert site, and they are subject to security checks on entry. Pic: Sasko Lazarov / © Pic: Sasko Lazarov / © Pic: Sasko Lazarov / © Pic: Sasko Lazarov / © The festival is now in its 11th year, with Saturday festival-goers seeing performances from Caribou, Mall Grab, Glass Beams, Effy and more. Sunday will see Dublin singer Jazzy take to the stage, as well as the iconic Underworld. Pic: Sasko Lazarov / © Pic: Sasko Lazarov / © Pic: Sasko Lazarov / © Pic: Sasko Lazarov / © South Korean DJ and singer-songwriter Peggy Gou also headlines on the second day of the festival which will be completely finished by 10.45pm. For those looking to party the night away following Forbidden Fruit there is plenty of activity happening in Dublin City Centre. Forbidden Fruit have urged all attendees that Kilmainham is a residential area, and 'respect the local community.' Organisers advise people to plan their journey home via Irish Rail; Dublin Bus or the Luas.
